Energy in Depth

Energy in Depth (EID) is a pro-oil-and-gas drilling industry front group formed by the American Petroleum Institute, the Independent Petroleum Association of America (IPAA) and dozens of additional industry organizations for the purpose of denouncing legislation proposed by Colorado U.S. Rep. Diana DeGette to regulate underground hydraulic fracturing fluids. Hydraulic fracturing of underground geological formations, commonly called "fracking," was invented by the Halliburton Company. It is done to increase the amounts of oil and gas that can be extracted from existing wells.

Energy in Depth denounces DeGette's proposed fracking legislation as an “unnecessary financial burden on a single small-business industry, American oil and natural gas producers.” In June, 2009, Energy in Depth started a multimillion dollar lobbying and public relations campaign aimed at derailing public health legislation that would require the disclosure of the chemicals used in fracking fluids. In addition to a Web site, EID's campaign includes a Twitter feed, a Facebook group, a YouTube channel and an aggressive advertising campaign.

Energy in Depth trumpets the economic contribution oil and gas drilling makes, and the numbers of people employed by the industry.

Funders
Energy in Depth is funded by the El Paso Corporation, XTO Energy, Occidental Petroleum, BP, Anadarko, Marathon, EnCana, Chevron, Talisman, Shell, API, the Independent Petroleum Association of America, Halliburton, Schlumberger and the Ohio Oil and Gas Association.

Website domain
The website for Energy in Depth was registered on February 23, 2009 by the PR firm Dittus Communications. Dittus, which is now known as FD Americas Public Affairs, boasts on its website that "energy clients have formed the backbone of FD Americas Public Affairs’ clientele for more than a decade." Clients have included Alabama Power, American Energy Alliance, Center for Clean Air Policy, Consumer Energy Alliance, FutureGen, Georgia Power, Independent Petroleum Association of America, Institute for Energy Research, Salt River Project and U.S. Department of Energy.

Background on health and safety hazards
The chemicals companies use in their fracking fluids are considered trade secrets and have traditionally been undisclosed.

Under the Bush administration, fracking was exempted from the Safe Drinking Water Act by the Energy Policy Act of 2005.ref>Alexandra Kougentakis, Brad Johnson [http://wonkroom.thinkprogress.org/2009/06/12/frack-attack/ What The Frack? Gas Industry’s Multimillion-Dollar Campaign Demonizes Hydraulic Fracturing Bill], Think Progress; The Wonk Room. June 12, 2009

Fracking has resulted in the documented contamination of groundwater wells and other environmental and public health hazards. In December, 2008, the Web site "OMB Watch" reported that

"Among the reports of damage to environmental and public health resulting from hydraulic fracturing are more than 1,000 cases of documented water contamination in Colorado, New Mexico, Alabama, Ohio, and Pennsylvania. In addition to contamination from the below-ground drilling, leaks and spills from trucks and waste pits are also causing problems. Tracking the contamination is especially difficult because drillers refuse to disclose the chemicals being used. Despite the secrecy, some information on the chemical mixture has been pieced together. Among the identified chemicals are volatile organic compounds (VOCs) such as benzene, toluene, ethyl benzene, and xylene."

OMB Watch further reported that a Colorado nurse suffered multi-organ failure after being exposed to a gas worker who had been brought into the hospital soaked with fracking fluid:

"The health risks from fracking chemicals was made clear in the summer of 2008 when a Colorado nurse almost died from exposure while treating a gas field worker whose clothing had been doused with the chemicals. Despite the nurse suffering from heart, lung, and liver failure, plus kidney damage and blurred vision, the drilling company refused to reveal to her doctors the 'proprietary' chemicals used in hydraulic fracturing. While the nurse eventually recovered, she was never told to what she had been exposed."

Personnel
On its website, Energy in Depth lists its press contacts as being:
 * Jeff Eshelman
 * Nicole Daigle
 * Brendan Bradley
 * Chris Tucker

It also lists its "policy contacts" as being:
 * Lee Fuller
 * Brian Kennedy

Contact information
Energy in Depth Web site: http://www.energyindepth.org/ (No physical address is given on its Web site) General phone number: (202) 346-8825 (NOTE: This is the same phone number as the Institute for Energy Research)

Related SourceWatch articles

 * Front groups
 * Oil industry